MUST-READS

• Saudi Aramco Needs To Balance Investor Needs Against Oil Prices

  Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco looks caught between a rock and a hard place. It seeks to win over new investors, especially foreign ones, while at the same time – as the world’s top crude oil exporter and the biggest OPEC producer – not allowing oil prices to crash. Aramco has just priced its secondary share offering at the lower end of the previously set range, in a sign that it is now focused on winning over international investors.

• Saudi Arabia sees 14% spike in remittances amid digital transformation

  Saudi Arabia saw a 14 percent annual increase in remittances by expatriates in April, with the total amount reaching SR11.35 billion ($3.03 billion), the latest data showed. Meanwhile, payments from Saudis, which constitute 30 percent of total personal transfers, saw a 30 percent increase during this period, totaling SR4.94 billion, according to the Saudi Central Bank, known as SAMA.

• Blinken in Middle East pushes Gaza ceasefire deal

  US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has visited Cairo and Jerusalem as he attempts to build regional support for a draft Gaza peace deal recently unveiled by President Joe Biden.

  The top American diplomat met with foreign leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on his eighth visit to the Middle East since the start of the war in Gaza.

• Saudi mining sector fastest growing investment hub globally: Ministry

  Saudi Arabia's mining sector has experienced the fastest global growth rate in the development of a regulatory and fundamental environment to attract investments over the last five years (2018-2023), according to the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources.   The ministry stated that Saudi Arabia has made significant global progress in the assessment of investment risks in the mining sector, which was issued by Minehutte and Mining Journal.

• China, Middle East Ties Accelerating

  China sources about 50% of its oil from the Middle East and North Africa region, and about a third of its natural gas. While China is not as highly dependent on the Middle East for its energy as, say, Japan or South Korea, the region is clearly vital to its future. The flip side is also true. For several Middle East states (including US allies), China is their number one export destination. They include Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, and Qatar.

• Saudi aid agency rehabilitates fish landing center in Yemen’s Hodeidah

  Saudi Arabia’s King Salman for Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) rehabilitated a fish landing center in Yemen’s Hodeidah, the Saudi Press Agency said. The site was renovated under the emergency support program to protect the agriculture, livestock and fishery-based livelihoods of highly vulnerable populations in Yemen, which is funded by the KSrelief.

• U.S. Saudi Academic Partnerships (Cooperative Agreement)

  The Saudi Ministry of Education (MOE) has undertaken an ambitious effort to strengthen partnerships between U.S. and Saudi HEIs, including in STEM, the arts, space, energy, and health care, among other topics.  This program will facilitate such linkages by establishing an international academic partnership program that would connect Saudi and U.S. HEIs, selected by the U.S. Embassy and the MOE with the guidance of the award recipient (the Recipient); provide tools to facilitate active bilateral educational exchange and research partnerships; and bring a delegation from the U.S. HEIs to Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dhahran for engagements with the MOE and Saudi HEIs 

• Presidential Elections in Iran: Curb Your Enthusiasm

  The Islamic Republic of Iran’s candidate-vetting Guardian Council has done it again: It has presented the Iranian public with presidential candidates who lack a political program, a social base, and the ability to mobilize voters. This strategy aims to repress voter participation in the election and thereby improve the odds of the election of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s preferred candidate, Saeed Jalili. Jalili, like late former President Ebrahim Raisi, would be likely to follow Khamenei’s orders and could be scapegoated for the regime’s deficiencies. However, Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Qalibaf is expected to put up a fight, much to Khamenei’s displeasure. Meanwhile, the question of succession after Khamenei remains unresolved.

• Saudi ministry of commerce officials inspect 24,880 shops ahead of Hajj

  Officials from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Commerce have inspected 24,880 shops in Makkah and Madinah to ensure they comply with the country’s business regulations. The shops were in the central areas of the two holy mosques, the Haramain train stations, commercial centers, gold and jewelry markets, and petrol stations. There were 1,259 violations recorded, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. Inspections will continue throughout the Hajj period, the ministry has indicated.

• UN Security Council backs plan for Israel-Hamas ceasefire
  The United Nations Security Council on Monday backed a proposal outlined by President Joe Biden for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip and urged the Palestinian militants to accept the deal aimed at ending the eight-month-long war.
  Hamas welcomed the adoption of the U.S.-drafted resolution and said in a statement that it is ready to cooperate with mediators over implementing the principles of the plan.

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